Why Abel Mutua was forced to delete his storytelling video after Ambani legal threat

Kenyan filmmaker and digital storyteller Abel Mutua has revealed that he recently took down one of his popular storytelling episodes after receiving a legal demand letter linked to India’s influential Ambani family.

According to him, the letter came after he narrated the story of two Ambani brothers in one of his Swahili episodes. the story explored how one brother became one of the world’s wealthiest businessmen while the other allegedly struggled after mismanaging inherited businesses.

Mutua claimed that the brother featured in the episode accused him of defamation and damaging his reputation.

“I received a demand letter and had to pull down the episode because I could not afford such a legal battle.”The content creator explained that fighting a lawsuit against someone with vast financial resources was beyond his means. He therefore chose to delete the video rather than risk lengthy court proceedings.

Abel, however, ended his account on a lighter note by wondering how the story, which he had narrated entirely in Kiswahili, reached the Indian businessman.

“I always tell my stories in Swahili. Who translated it for those Indians?” The remarks quickly sparked debate on social media, with many users correcting a key detail that had caused confusion online.

Social media users noted that the businessman in question was Mukesh Ambani, not Gautam Adani, after some online posts mistakenly referred to the family as the “Adani brothers.”

One user @njokiiiv9za wrote, “Jamani ni Ambani si Adani. Stop misleading people.” Another added, “People should read and know that Adani and Ambani are two different entities.”

The revelation divided opinion among Kenyans online. Some questioned whether Mutua’s stories are sufficiently researched to attract legal complaints.

“Does it mean his stories are jaba? If they’re well researched, he should not be afraid to get into a legal battle,” @Wa_gacanja commented.

Others defended his decision to remove the video,@GeorgeNmwa wrote, “Abel knows, usishindane na ndovu kunya. Glad he didn't have a chest thump.”

Other fans suggested that Mutua should simply republish the episode with stronger legal safeguards, writing, “ where he should just add ‘allegedly’ and put it back.

At the same time, others dismissed the claims entirely, with one user challenging Mutua to produce the alleged demand letter as proof.

Others even went ahead and  explained that it was not surprising that the story reached an Indian audience, noting that many Kenyan Asians speak Kiswahili fluently after generations of living in the country.